Washington State University Enters March Madness After 16

Years
Written by: Alexandra Medina

PULLMAN, Wash. - After losing in the Pac-12 championship, the men's basketball team of
Washington State University will be on the way to the NCAA tournament after 16 years.

The Cougars No.7 seed are set to play against No. 10 seed Drake on Mar. 21 in Omaha, NE.

Washington State has never won a national basketball NCAA championship. However, this is
not the first time that Washington State has made it into the tournament. In 2008 Washington
was the No.4 seed, but its run for the NCAA Championship trophy was cut short after falling to
North Carolina 68-47 in the Elite Eight.

Washington will be finishing the regular season with an overall record of 24-9. Not only was
Washington able to clinch 14 of 20 conference game wins, but also several individual awards.
Kyle Smith, the head coach of WSU earned the John R. Wooden Coach of the Year award, and
freshmen Myles Rice was named freshman of the year by the Pac-12.

Jaylen Wells, Oscar Cluff, and Isaac Jones (left to right)(AP Photo/Young Qwak)

Multiple NBA players have come out of Washington, including Klay Thompson, from the Golden
State Warriors. While the dream of making it to the NBA remains for the athletes, one goal has
always remained for Washington… to cut down the nets for the first time in history.
The nets will hang in Glendale, Arizona for the NCAA championship game on Apr. 8. WSU fans
all over the country are rallying together to cheer on Washington after waiting 16 years for this
moment.